Those looking to reduce their carbon footprint and save money on energy costs can accomplish both goals by installing solar panels on your home. Solarise Solar has been helping those in Colorado with high-quality residential solar panel installation since 2016. Our company utilizes black-on-black, high-output solar panels with a 30-year warranty. If you are looking to buy solar panels to help protect the environment and save money on your electricity, let us help.
Contact Solarise today for a free consultation to see if residential solar panel installation is right for you. We offer low-interest financing options and $0 down installation!
Table of Contents
- Solar Panel Benefits
- Number of Solar Panels
- How Solar Works
- Solar Panel Maintenance & Repair
- Frequently Asked Questions About Residential Solar Panel Installation
- Solar Panel Installation Cost
What Are the Benefits of Solar Panels?
There are a number of benefits associated with solar panels. The major benefits of residential solar panels include:
- Be free from utility rate increases: Renting your power from a utility company never ends, and rates are historically rising. Going solar locks in a stable rate, and solar panel payments are generally less expensive or equal to your power bill.
- Become energy independent: When the panels are paid off, you will own your power thereby eliminating or nearly eliminating your power bill altogether.
- Get federal rebates and tax incentives: Installing solar panels on your home allows you to claim a Federal Tax Credit of 30% of the total cost of the system through 2032. This tax credit applies to equipment, installation, and related expenses with no maximum limit. After 2032, the credit will step down to 26% in 2033 and 22% in 2034. You may also qualify for additional State and Utility Incentives.
- Reduce your carbon footprint: Most power companies burn natural gas, which despite its name is a fossil fuel, and that creates a lot of pollution to create energy for powering homes. Solar panels collect energy from the sun and only produce clean energy.
How Many and What Types of Solar Panels Will You Need?
There are many factors that affect the number of solar panels and what type you will need. The three most common types of solar panels include monocrystalline, thin-film and polycrystalline panels. A professional solar panel installer will look at the size of your home, consider how much energy you use, what environmental factors, weather elements your panels are subject to, and even what direction your home faces when helping to determine what type and the number of solar panels you may need.
How Do Solar Panels Work?
Solar panels may sound complicated to those who do not use the system, but in reality, it is extremely easy. Sunlight hits your solar panels and charges them. This creates direct current electricity. Inverters on the panels then turn the direct current electricity into alternate current electricity. Alternate current electricity can be sent to a grid where it can be stored and used for future electricity, which is what powers your home.
How Do You Maintain and Repair Solar Panels?
Because there are no moving parts on the solar panels, they are maintenance-free! Outside of that, your panels are connected to a monitoring system that will tell you in your app how much power your panels are generating. If the inverters are not working or if the energy being collected is reduced for no explainable reason, contact the solar panel installation company for warranty claims.
Residential Solar Panel Installation FAQ
How many solar panels do I need? To determine how much solar panel energy your panels must produce to run your home, you can use the information on your monthly usage shown on your electricity bill. Divide the monthly average of watt-hours you use by the average number of daily hours of sunlight your property receives. This calculation will total the watts of solar energy your panels must generate on an hourly average.
Your solar expert will help you determine how many solar panels are needed to power a house the size of yours in your climate area. The types of electrical appliances and devices in your home and your family’s frequency of use will also be factored in the calculation. For a general estimate, the average family home in the U.S. needs from 20 to 24 panels to replace the use of electricity from the grid entirely with solar energy. The numbers also vary based on panel specifications.
You may need to pay a little attention to your solar panels in winter, depending on where you live. After a light snow, sunlight may still hit your solar panels. Solar panels are typically installed at an angle, so even heavy snow may slide off when heat from the sun begins to melt it. But, if thick snow is not melting off, it needs to be removed so that the panels will receive enough sunlight to produce energy.
A solar panel federal tax credit called the Investment Tax Credit (ITC) allows homeowners to claim a substantial income tax credit when filing their annual income tax returns. You can claim the credit for the tax year you purchased your solar panels and accompanying equipment for your residential solar energy system for a major savings on your solar panel installation cost.
The three most common ways to pay for solar panels are by cash purchase, a solar loan, or by a solar lease agreement (also known as a power purchase). Paying cash is, of course, saves you from paying interest on a solar loan. It allows you to begin saving the cost of utility bills immediately because the savings from reduced electricity bills are not lost to making loan interest payments.
Yes, solar panels for home installation can serve your needs much more fully with a solar backup battery. The solar battery enables you to run your home’s electrical appliances and devices during a grid power outage. It also allows you to minimize the total energy you’ll need to buy from the public power grid for regular day-to-day electricity usage.
Solar panel installation includes these steps and components: First, your solar panel installer will prepare your roof for the panel installation. Then, the installer will run electrical wiring to connect your home’s breaker panel and existing electrical system to your new solar energy system. Finally, a system of racks will be installed on your roof to support your solar panels. Nothing other than the support racks will be attached to the roof.
If your solar panel system is supplying enough electricity for all your family’s needs, you may still want to consider adding a solar battery for additional energy to charge your car at night. If you are still purchasing some of your electricity from the local public utility company, it will probably be necessary to add more panels to provide additional solar energy to charge your EV.
Get a Residential Solar Panel Installation Quote Today
The cost of energy continues to rise, and electric companies continue to raise their rates. High-efficiency solar panels help you have control over your energy costs and ensure you are not at the mercy of the large energy companies. If you are looking for solar that looks great on your home and has a long lifespan, Solarise Solar has the solution for you. All of our projects are overseen by master electricians with over 15 years of experience, and our panels have a warranty of 30 years. We also offer no money down, low-interest financing programs to help ensure the panels are affordable for all households.